I'm trying to buy high speed train tickets from Italoreno for a month from now, and I see offers for 2 X 1 and for senior discounts.
But, I don't see any price difference when I try to buy those tickets.
Am I doing something wrong?
And, has anybody had success getting the discounts from Trenitalia? I do see some reduced prices, but only if you have a card freccia. But, older threads said that those were a real hassle to get.
HI Josh,
It appears the Senior Discount shows up on some Italo routes sometimes but not all. For example, I tried Rome-Florence return April 15-18. The Senior rate was the last on the list for April 15, beneath "Extra Magic" (Extra magic is non-refundable and does not allow changes, whereas the Sr rate allowed some changes). There was no discount on the April 18 leg, which suggests that fare has sold out.
The Italo 2x1 offer notes the following: "50% discount compared to the Flex fare price, available for groups of 2 passengers traveling in Smart or Prima Business class. Offer valid until 22/03. Thereafter, it applies exclusively on 05/04 and 02/05." So maybe your dates don't work?
For the carta Freccia program: It's not that hard to get. When signing up, you have to click the box that says "I do not have a tax code." and indicate that your residence is abroad. Once you have a number (it comes instantly), you proceed with your booking. You have to enter your birthdate when signing up. I am guessing that the program will automatically recognize when a senior rate should apply. My birthdate doesn't quite qualify, so I can't see those rates. Perhaps someone else can confirm?
For comparison, Italo came out about 30 euros cheaper when I ran my test for similar departure times. But as I said, I can't generate the senior rate associated with the Freccia discount.
Hope this is helpful!
Thanks for the help.
My dates do line up for the 2X1 discount, but it didn't work for that either.
I guess like the senior discount, the 2X1 ticket will apply to some train rides and not others even if both of them are the same route.
Also, does anybody know when the train ticket prices go up?
If I buy the ticket on the departure date, that's the most expensive price.
But, is there any difference if I buy the ticket a month from the departure date vs a week from the departure date?
Ticket prices don’t “go up”
Base rate remains the same now or day of
Discounted tickets will sell out in advance
Yes but the effect to the consumer is the same -- the later they look, the more expensive the ticket is.
To OP: there isn't a certain 21 days or one week or 10 days or anything. It's just that as times goes on and it gets closer to the date of travel, more people have bought up the tickets in the cheaper "buckets," leaving only tickets in more expensive "buckets" available. It just depends how rapidly that happens (more quickly for popular times/destinations, as a general rule).
